Screwless terminal fuseholder



NOV. 22, 1966 c BOONE SGREWLESS TERMINAL FUSEHOLDER Filed July 29, 1965 United States Patent 3,287,528 SCREWLESS TERMINAL FUSEHOLDER Christopher B. Boone, 23 Christine Drive, Shelton, Conn. Filed July 29, 1965, Ser. No. 475,801 4 Claims. (Cl. 200-129) This invention relates to improvements in holders for cartridge enclosed protectors for electric circuits. More particularly this invention relates to enclosed screwless terminal fuseholders.

An important object of the invention is to provide an enclosed screwless terminal fuseholder, wherein the leads or wires may be attached to the contacts or terminals without soldering or other connectors such as crimp-on or screW-On connectors.

Another object of the invention is to provide such a fuseholder wherein the leads or wires are held permanently and securely to the terminals or contacts, without the danger of separation or loosening, thus avoiding an interruption of the flow of current through a corresponding circuit.

A further object of the invention is to provide such a fuseholder, wherein the connections of the wires or leads to the terminals or contacts may be quickly and efficiently made Without the use of special equipment, such as soldering irons crimping tools and the like.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a screwless terminal fuseholder comprising an assemblable casing for receiving the fuse cartridge, said casing consisting of a pair of identical mating halves and of simple means for securely holding said halves together.

A further object of the invention is to provide means for mounting said fuseholder in standard fluorescent fixtures, various electrical, electronic equipment and the like.

Yet another object of the invention is to provide a device of the character described which can be assembled with a minimum of previous instruction.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a device of the character described which is simple in design, of sturdy construction and which may be manufactured at a reasonable cost.

These and other important objects of the invention will become apparent from the following description and the accompanying drawing illustrating a preferred embodiment of the invention.

In the drawing:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the screwless terminal fuseholder;

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken on line 22 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an exploded view of part of the fuseholder, illustrating the method of securing a wire to one terminal of the fuseholder and FIG. 4 is an exploded view of another part of the fuseholder, illustrating the method of securing a wire to another terminal of the fuseholder.

Referring now to the drawing in detail, the novel fuseholder comprises a pair of identical mating insulating members generally indicated by the numerals 8, 8', which are held in firm engagement by means of split clinch ring 10, as shown in FIG. 1. For the sake of simplicity, the construction of the fuseholder will be described in its assembled state. When thus assembled the fuseholder presents a hollow portion 12, an intermediate reduced portion 14, an elongated part 16 terminating in a terminal retaining section 18, and finally a wire guard 20.

The inner face 22 of the cylindrical portion 12 is formed with an inwardly extending angular flange 24 and a recess 26 merging with a groove 28, for holding a stud receiver clip 30, preferably of phosphor bronze.

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The stud receiver clip is formed with two pairs of resilient clinching tongues 32, 32, which are adapted to grasp the bare wire ends 34, 34, so that these are firmly secured to the clipv 30. The clip is further provided with an opening 36 conforming in shape to the collar 38 and its projections 40, of a standard cartridge fuse cap assembly 42 used in fluorescent lighting fixtures.

The intermediate portion 14, of the fuseholder, has narrow passages 44 communicating with the hollow portion of the part 12, for passing the bare Wire ends 34, 34'. The passages 44 terminate as enlarged openings 48 for receiving the insulated parts 50 of wires. The intermediate part 14 is further provided with a cavity 52 to provide clearance for the collar 38 and projections 40 of the cartridge fuse cap assembly 42. The cavity 52 communicates with one end of the elongated portion 16 of the fuseholder, in order to permit the fuse 54 proper to be inserted in the elongated portion 16. A coil spring 56 lies in an expanded section near the other end of the elongated portion. Another stud receiver plate 58 is received in a groove 60 of the enlarged section 18, said groove communicating with the elongated portion, and a passage 62 for the bare wire end 64 and the wire guard 20.

As shown in FIG. 1, the intermediate reduced portion 14 is formed with slots 66 for bracket mounting and raised ribs 68 for pressure mounting in a panel or other mounting member aperture.

The manner of assembling the components of the fuseholder proper is as follows:

The stud receiver clips 30 and 58 are inserted in the respective grooves 28 and 60 of one of the identical halves 8, 8', followed by the insertion of spring 56 in the large section of the elongated portion 16 adjacent the stud receiver clip 58. The other half of the fuseholder is then placed over the first half and both are secured by means of the split clinch ring 10. The spring 56 cannot fall out of the enlarged section of the elongated portion .16, because its diameter is slightly larger than the inside diameter of the rest of the elongated section 16.

Connections to the fuseholder are made as follows:

The stripped end 46 of a wire is forced through the opening between the resilient tongues 32, 32' of the stud receiver clip 30, While the insulated portion 50 is inserted in the passage 48. Due to the resiliency of the tongues 32, 32' these grasp the stripped end 46 of the wire, thus assuring a firm contact between the wire end 46 and the stud receiver plate 30. In a similar manner the stripped end 64 of the other wire is inserted in the stud receiver clip 58 where it is likewise firmly engaged with said clip. The insulated portion 70 is at the same time received in the wire guard 20. Should a parallel connection be required, a stripped end of another wire is forced through the other pair of resilient tongues in the stud receiver clip 30. Finally, a cartridge fuse cap assembly is secured in the fuseholder by first sliding the fuse cartridge proper through the opening 36 in the stud receiver clip 30 until the face 41 of the assembly 42 bottoms in recess 22, while cap 72 makes contact with spring 56. The fuse cap assembly is then twisted, so that the projections 40 are pressed in contact with the circular edges 74 of the clip 30 by the spring 56.

While the invention has been described with reference to the above embodiment, it should be understood that various changes in the shapes and dimensions of the elements may be made without confining the invention to said embodiment, without affecting the scope of the invention.

Having thus disclosed my invention, what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States of America is:

1. A screwless terminal fuseholder comprising a casing of non-conductive material, said casing including integral consecutively disposed hollow, intermediate, elongated and enlarged part retaining portions, a first stud receiver contact plate in said hollow portion, at least one pair of resilient clinching tongues, means in said hollow portion transverse to the plane of the stud-receiver contact plate and in alignment with said clinching tongues, for the insertion of a wire end into clamping engagement in said first contact stud receiver plate, said first contact stud receiver plate having a central aperture therein to allow the insertion of a fuse cartridge, a second stud receiver contact plate in said enlarged part retaining portion, said second plate being provided with a pair of clinching tongues for securing another wire end, a spring in said elongated portion in contact engagement with said second stud receiver plate, said first stud receiver plate being provided with means for securing one end of a cartridge fuse in contact engagement with said spring and another end of said cartridge fuse in contact engagement with said first stud receiver contact plate.

2. A screwless terminal fuseholder comprising a casing of non-conductive material, said casing including integral consecutively disposed hollow, intermediate, elongated and enlarged part retaining portions, said hollow portion having a recess transverse to said elongated portion, a first stud receiver plate in said recess, at least one pair of resilient clinching tongues means in said hollow portion transverse to the plane of the stud-receiver contact plate and in alignment with said clinching tongues, for the insertion of a wire end into clamping engagement in said first stud receiver plate, said first stud receiver plate having a central aperture therein for the passage of a fuse cartridge, said enlarged part retaining portion having another recess, a second stud receiver plate in said other recess, said second plate being provided with a pair of clinching tongues for securing another wire end, a helical spring in said elongated portion in contactual engagement with said second stud receiver plate, said spring extending part way of said elongated portion, said first stud receiver plate being provided with means for securing one end of a fuse cartridge in contact engagement with said spring and another end of said cartridge in contact engagement with said first stud receiver plate.

3. A screwless terminal fuseholder comprising a casing of non-conductive material, said casing including a pair of mating members held in engagement with one another, said members forming together consecutively disposed hollow, intermediate, elongated and enlarged part retaining portions, a clamp for holding said members together, a first stud receiver plate in said hollow portion at least one pair of resilient clinching tongues, means in said hollow portion transverse to the plane of the stud-receiver contact plate and in alignment with said clinching tongues, for the insertion of a wire end into clamping engagement for securing a wire end for securing a wire end in said first stud receiver plate, said first stud receiver plate having a central aperture therein for passage of a fuse cartridge, said enlarged part retaining portion having another recess, a second stud receiver plate in said other recess, said second plate being provided with a pair of clinching tongues for securing another wire end, a helical spring in said elongated portion in contactual engagement with said second stud receiver plate, said spring extending part way of said portion, said first stud receiver plate being provided with means for securing one end of a fuse cartridge in contact engagement with said spring and another end of said cartridge in contact engagement with said first stud receiver plate, said intermediate portion having a pair of oppositely disposed slots on its outer face, for bracket mounting and raised ribs for pressure mounting in a fluorescent light fixture, or other electrical equipment panel.

4. A screwless terminal fuseholder comprising a casing of non-conductive material, said casing including a pair of mating members fixed to one another, said members forming together consecutively disposed hollow, intermediate, elongated and enlarged part retaining portions, a clamp for holding said members together, a first stud receiver plate in said hollow portion, two pairs of resilient clinching tongues, means in said hollow portion transverse to the plane of the stud-receiver contact plate and in alignment with said clinching tongues, for the insertion of a pair of wire ends into clamping engagement respectively in said first stud receiver plate, for parallel connection, said first stud receiver plate having a central aperture therein for the passage of a fuse cartridge, said enlarged part retaining portion having another recess, a second stud receiver plate in said other recess, said second plate being provided with a pair of clinching tongues for securing another wire end, a helical spring in said elongated portion in contactual engagement with said second stud receiver plate, said spring extending part way of said portion, said first stud receiver plate being provided with means for securing one end of a fuse cartridge in contact engagement with said spring and another end of said cartridge in contact engagement with said first stud receiver plate.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,668,215 2/1954 Duerkob 200l29 2,668,888 2/1954 Johnson 200l29 2,759,065 8/1956 Moeller 200131 2,831,087 4/1958 Sundt 200l29 X 2,890,436 6/1959 Bentley 339 X BERNARD A. GILHEANY, Primary Examiner. 

1. A SCREWLESS TERMINAL FUSEHOLDER COMPRISING A CASING OF NON-CONDUCTIVE MATERIAL, SAID CASING INCLUDING INTEGRAL CONSECUTIVELY DISPOSED HOLLOW, INTERMEDIATE, ELONGATED AND ENLARGED PART RETAINING PORTIONS, A FIRST STUD RECEIVER CONTACT PLATE IN SAID HOLLOW PORTION, AT LEAST ONE PAIR OF RESILIENT CLINCHING TONGUES, MEANS IN SAID HOLLOW PORTION TRANSVERSE TO THE PLANE OF THE STUD-RECEIVER CONTACT PLATE AND IN ALIGNMENT WITH SAID CLINCHING TONGUES, FOR THE INSERTION OF A WIRE END INTO CLAMPING ENGAGEMENT IN SAID FIRST CONTACT STUD RECEIVER PLATE, SAID FIRST CONTACT STUD RECEIVER PLATE HAVING A CENTRAL APERTURE THEREIN TO ALLOW THE INSERTION OF A FUSE CARTRIDGE, A SECOND STUD RECEIVER CONTACT PLATE IN SAID ENLARGED PART RETAINING PORTION, SAID SECOND PLATE BEING PROVIDED WITH A PAIR OF CLINCHING TONGUES FOR SECURING ANOTHER WIRE END, A SPRING IN SAID ELONGATED PORTION IN CONTACT ENGAGEMENT WITH SAID SECOND STUD RECEIVER PLATE, SAID FIRST STUD RECEIVER PLATE BEING PROVIDED WITH MEANS FOR SECURING ONE END OF A CARTRIDGE FUSE IN CONTACT ENGAGEMENT WITH SAID SPRING AND ANOTHER END OF SAID CARTRIDGE FUSE IN CONTACT ENGAGEMENT WITH SAID FIRST STUD RECEIVER CONTACT PLATE. 